Refurbishment work starts on London's iconic Hungerford Bridge

A 161-year-old London railway span is to beryllium refurbished from Thursday, Network Rail has said.

Hungerford Bridge, the operation that takes the railway implicit the Thames betwixt the South Bank and London Charing Cross station, volition beryllium restored, with enactment expected to beryllium completed by the extremity of wintertime 2028.

A determination to reconstruct the span was made aft the infrastructure from 1864 started to look “old”, according to Network Rail, arsenic it expressed interest astir the railways being capable to tally safely successful its existent condition.

The bridge is made up of spans of wrought robust lattice girders from the Victorian era, and has been repaired and refurbished respective times passim its life.

The task comes arsenic Network Rail announces it is investing £213million implicit the adjacent 4 years to springiness way structures utilized by the railway a revamp - portion different structures volition simply beryllium replaced.

“With specified aged infrastructure, it’s important that the span is maintained truthful that the railway tin beryllium tally safely and reliably for passengers,” a connection by the transport assemblage said.

As portion of the extended refurbishment, engineers volition overgarment the span and trial the truss pins, but each of the archetypal metalwork volition beryllium retained.

Network Rail’s Kent Route manager David Davidson said: “Many of the bridges connected Britain’s railway are from the Victorian epoch and being liable for this nationalist practice is some a privilege and a challenge. Some of the structures are precise old, truthful are susceptible to corrosion and harm from weather.

“Refurbishment of Hungerford Bridge volition instrumentality 3 years, and we won’t request to adjacent the span to trains during this archetypal signifier arsenic we’ll beryllium moving astatine times that origin the slightest disruption to bid services. This means we are carrying retired immoderate of our enactment during the night.

"To debar further disruption, we volition besides usage barges to present and region discarded materials to Surrey Pier for the play of the works to debar creating other postulation and the resulting pollution. This volition debar the equivalent of six motortruck freight deliveries done cardinal London a week.”

The refurbishment volition beryllium phased implicit 3 years. The archetypal signifier volition footwear disconnected connected the spans connected the Southbank and the southbound broadside of the river, lasting until January 2026. The 2nd signifier volition spot the main refurbishment works connected the remaining spans crossed the river, from January 2026 until wintertime 2028.

Londoners are expected to spot predominant play closures betwixt 2026-2028 arsenic enactment occurs, but dates are inactive being arranged.